Today in History, March 13, 1781: William Herschel discovers Uranus: The German-born English astronomer William Herschel discovered Uranus, the seventh planet from the sun. Herschels discovery of a new planet was the first to be made in modern times, and also the first to be made by use of a telescope, which allowed Herschel to distinguish Uranus as a planet, not a star, as previous astronomers believed. Herschel, who was later knighted for his historic discovery, named the planet Georgium Sidus, or the Georgian planet, in honor of King George III of England. However, German astronomer Johann Bode proposed the name Uranus for the celestial body in order to conform to the classical mythology-derived names of other known planets. Uranus, the ancient greek deity of the heavens, was a predecessor of the Olympian gods. By the mid-nineteenth century, it was also the generally accepted name of the seventh planet from the sun.
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 23:25:59 +0000